10
Trips

22 de January de 2019

New Visions, New Leaders

"Masters of Design and Innovation 2016"

Number 09 - 22 de January de 2019

Masters of Design and Innovation

Trips and visits during the Masters of Design and Innovation are essential experiences for personal growth and learning. Trips, whose itineraries are linked to the contents of the course didactics, help to change students’ perception of innovation and design, providing opportunities to make connections with the professional world.

Taking a workshop at a prestigious company, participating in a major conference, meeting with true gurus of design and advertising, visiting large factories and becoming aware of future trends is the invaluable objective of these trips and visits. In addition, contact with other cultures and ways of living is essential for students to develop their full capacity and enhance divergent, innovative and extraordinary thinking.

1 La granja de San Ildefonso (Segovia)

The visit forms part of the first cross-curricular stage of the MAs, where students are brought closer to the field of design and project culture from a collective perspective. The central theme of the trip was the reflection on the future in the widest sense of the word, and the role played by designers in this future. A shared and unique experience, aimed at personal development, with team building exercises, outdoor experiences and seminars focusing on a conceptual reflection regarding upcoming scenarios. Introspective work and personal development were encouraged in the students, as individuals and as a group.

The trip was coordinated by Pablo Jarauta (unit coordinator of this cross-curricular section), a philosopher who has worked in the fields of the history of cartography, travel literature, the history of ideas and the sociocultural contexts of design. Thanks to the support and attention provided by the team of workers and artisans, the students were able to enjoy a guided visit of the factory and learn about glasswork in the workshop.

The activities were developed under the vision of important professionals from a range of sectors: Carlos Goga—EntrepreneurCoach –professionals from Musarión, a consultancy specialised in Leader Coaching—, Pedro Medina —Editorial Director at the IED Madrid—,Marisa Santamaría—Institutional Relations Director at the IED Madrid—, Javier Maseda—Creative Director at the IED Madrid—, Elena Urizar—UX designer—, Andrea Morpurgo and Santiago Rubín—Tutors of the first unit of the MAs—.

2 Milan

Milan is a city straight out of a dreamer’s mind, an earthquake of creativity brimming with history, design and innovation every day of the year. However, every 12 months it becomes the epicentre of the international design movement. Yes, we are talking about Milan during its Design Week, seven days when everything in the city revolves around design, and our students were infected with its example in the fields of fashion, design and architecture.

However, the città di Milano has much more to offer than museums. Milan is a vibrant spirit, full of emotions that can be felt only when one wanders through its Design Districts. This took our students to the quarters of Sant’Ambrogio, Brera, Tortona and Ventura Lambrate, each of which has its own peculiarities, its history and of course its way of expressing design.

And the need to get to know the “real Milan” also took our creatives to discover parallel activities, such as Eat Urban – Food Truck Festival. An homage to Street Food and open-air activities which offered some of the best gourmet food trucks in Italy, and during which the students were also able to appreciate the relationship between food and design.

When?

April 2016

Where?

Milan, Italy

Who?

Master of Product Design Labs

3 Berlin

Berlin is a mutant city: it is art, culture, innovation and design in is maximum splendour and in every corner. Berlin emerges from the urban, from the people, from desperation and its history; and it has been reborn as a creative city. The question is not why Berlin, but why not, as was revealed to the students of the IED Madrid during their trip to this city, which is full of surprises.

The students attended the Re:publica lectures –one of the world’s most important and exciting events around digital culture– and they visited the Creation Game Science Center –a small interactive “museum of the future”–, and enjoyed a week full of experiences of all kinds in order to enrich their personal and professional development.

Additionally, they enjoyed a warm reception at the business service consultancy phi360, where they attended a talk on biomimicry, the science which studies nature as a source of inspiration –a huge pillar in sustainable design–, and they visited the creative studio of Keen on Mars, which focuses on playful communication.

They also visited the studio of Patrick Thomas–a communication professional, iconographer and designer, among others, of the current logo of DESIGUAL– who gave them an autobiographical presentation of his artistic career. They also visited one of the best-known co-working spaces in the Berlin city: St. Oberholz.

And as Berlin has a museum for each day of the year (365 exactly), the students did not let the culture irradiated by this city pass unnoticed and they visited different galleries, depending on their preferences.

When?

May 2016

Where?

Berlin, Germany

Who?

Master of Strategic Design Labs y Master of Communication Design Labs

4 Stockholm

The Masters of Design and Innovation visited the city which has produced leading companies in the field of innovation, such as Ikea, Volvo, Electrolux and H&M. This, combined with the architectural beauty, urban nature and vast cultural offer that characterise Stockholm, make it the ideal destination for creative and innovative minds.

During the visit to the Scandinavian city, the students of the Master of Strategic Design Labs had the chance to come into contact with pioneering companies in project development such as Another Tomorrow —a consultancy firm that helps “prototype future ideas”— and FJord —a design and innovation studio where the met specialists in conceptualisation and digital interaction—.

They also visited Form Us With Love —an international design studio which showed them how to feel passion for design through traditional creative practices with real and strategic applications—, Mirum Agency —a global digital agency for the creation of “experiences that people want and companies need”—, andGoogol,—a company whose motto is to “bring opportunities to life”—.

The visit offered students the chance to share their business ideas with Start up Stockholm—a company whose mission is to support and advise those who wish to start a business— and Very Day, —one of the world’s most important design and innovation consultancy firms—. They also had the privilege of meeting the founder of Stockholm Design Lab, Björn Kusoffsky, who taught them to transform brands and businesses with simple and outstanding ideas.

They also took part in the Trend-Spotting and Future Thinking workshop organised by the prestigious Konstfack University College of Art, with Pomme Van Hoof, who is a collaborator of Clive van Heerden, the current Led Innovation Design Director at Philips Design and the Program Leader of the Master of Product Design Labs.

As work is not everything in a city with so much to offer, the students enjoyed the city’s many attractions: the went to the wonderful Nobel Museum and the unique Stockholm Public Library. They had pleasant walks around the cobbled streets of Gamla Stan and they discovered the old part of the city, with its picturesque and colourful little houses and crafts shops.

When?

September 2016

Where?

Stockholm, Sweden

¿Quién?

Master of Strategic Design Labs

5 New York

New York is a fascinating city with a lot to offer at any time of day and on any day of the year. The city is always active, hence its moniker as the city that never sleeps, and the Masters of Design and Innovation had the chance to enjoy the frenzied pace of the Big Apple.

Design was the star of the visit, and the students had the opportunity to visit the headquarters of BlueMap, a renowned company devoted to creating, renewing and strengthening brand power through design. Its style stands out for its simplicity, along with its honesty and respect for function, use and durability, above superficial adornments.

Additionally, the students took part in the Intro to Social Entrepreneurship workshop (Opportunities, Challenges and Trends) at the Social Innovation Centre; they visited the global art, design and business focal point that is the Parsons School of Design; and the fashion and ethical design centrePratt, which offers designers the necessary resources to transform their ideas into successful businesses.

As was to be expected in a place like New York City, a lot happened during the week the students were there. The creatives got to know Manhattan —the heart of the city—and Central Park. They visited Soho —an important neighbourhood full of artists, galleries and new trends— and made the most of one of the top culture and leisure spaces in the world.